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    April 1, 2016   For Immediate Release Contact(s):    Peter Costa, +1 984 500 8593 (USA), pcosta@onehealthcommission.org                         Chris Vanlangendonck, +32 475 81 38 59 (Belgium), c.vanlangendonck@onehealthplatform.com   GLOBAL “ONE HEALTH DAY” PLANNED BY THREE INTERNATIONAL ONE HEALTH GROUPS – NOVEMBER 3, 2016 Three leading international One Health groups, the One Health Commission, the One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono Team, and the One Health Platform Foundation are partnering to create a global “One Health Day”.   On November 3, individuals and groups from around the world, from academic to corporate & non-profit, students to established professionals, will have the opportunity to implement One Health projects and special events under the auspices of “One Health Day.” Projects will highlight the benefits of a One Health transdisciplinary approach towards solving today’s critical global-planetary health challenges.  “It is anticipated that emerging projects will focus on many of the arenas under the One Health umbrella including worldwide public health issues such as emerging/reemerging zoonotic infectious diseases, comparative medicine research including cancer, heart disease, orthopedic diseases and the inextricable interactions between animal, environmental and human health”, said Dr. Cheryl Stroud, Executive Director of the One Health Commission, veterinary scientist and One Health leader. One Health is a movement to forge co-equal, all-inclusive collaborations, in both research and applied sciences, between human and veterinary medical healthcare providers, social scientists, dentists, nurses, agriculturalists and food producers, wildlife and environmental health specialists and many other related disciplines. As early as 2010 the World Bank recognized and published documentary evidence supporting benefits of a One Health approach in disease prevention, public health and global security. “Many prominent scientists, physicians, veterinarians and other significant health professionals are endorsing the One Health concept”, said Dr. Laura Kahn, Co-Founder of the One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono Team, physician and internationally published One Health author/leader.  “The One Health approach is being increasingly accepted by numerous major international health oriented organizations such as the World Health Organization, the World Medical Association, the World Veterinary Association, the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, the World Organization for Animal Health, and many others.  An outstanding group of One Health textbooks and international professional One Health journals have emerged”, says Kahn. The One Health concept is a worldwide strategy for planetary health. It will support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the United States led Global Health Security Agenda. Transdisciplinary synergisms achieved will advance health for the 21st century and beyond by accelerating biomedical research on topics that fall at the interface of many disciplines, improving medical education, and clinical care. When properly implemented, One Health will help sustain biodiversity, protect the planet and save untold millions of lives in our present and future generations.   “Recent global disease events, like the outbreaks of Ebola, MERS and Zika, have underpinned the increasing impacts of zoonotic diseases on human and animal health. It has also become clear that changes in the environment, like population growth and climate change, are drivers for the emergence of such zoonoses“, said Prof. Dr. Ab Osterhaus, Chair of the One Health Platform Foundation Board, veterinarian, and leading Dutch virologist and influenza expert. Regional One Health Day Spokespersons from around the world are being engaged to liaise with project teams in their respective locales. Anyone, individuals or groups, from academic to corporate to non-profit, students to established professionals can plan and implement a One Health Day event. Student groups from all disciplines are encouraged to participate and will have the option to compete for cash prizes and global recognition. This global partnership will provide a platform for One Health supporters around the world to help make One Health thinking the ‘default’ way of doing business. Working together across human, animal and environmental health professions, those who believe strongly that One Health is our ‘Ray of Hope’ for the future can accomplish significant change.                                      #### Additional information is available online at www.onehealthday.org Click the links below for a non-exhaustive list - of major international health oriented organizations that support One Health - of One Health textbooks - of One Health journals About the initiators The One Health Commission is a globally focused 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to promoting improved health of people, domestic animals, wildlife, plants and the environment. Committed to creating unifying interactions and opportunities between animal health, human health and planetary health, it is a gateway for the active exchange of One Health-related knowledge, sharing of resources and collaborative projects that reach beyond disciplinary boundaries. Working to train the next generation of One Health leaders, the Commission seeks to ‘Connect’ One Health Advocates, to ‘Create’ networks and teams that work together across disciplines to ‘Educate’ about One Health and One Health issues. It does this by leading and facilitating active One Health education initiatives around the world. www.onehealthcommission.org The One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono Team was originally established 2006-2007.  The One Health Initiative website, originated October 2008, has been called the international clearing house for significant One Health information and by some the New York Times of One Health.” Its world-wide circulation has been strengthened by its up-to-date One Health News, Publications and Upcoming Events postings relative to animal, human and environmental health.  It is currently estimated to be accessed monthly by roughly 20,000 individual visitors from over 150 countries.  The OHI website is known to have had at least 119 reciprocal links worldwide.  Among the leading high profile search engines the One Health Initiative website is listed first or among the first when either “One Health Initiative” or “One Health” are typed in. www.onehealthinitiative.com The One Health Platform is a strategic forum of stakeholders and a One Health reference network that aims to enhance our understanding of zoonoses, emerging infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance, including the ecological and environmental factors which impact on these diseases. The One Health Platform engages in collaborative partnerships with existing international governmental and non-governmental organizations and institutions to set up a framework for information-sharing, cooperation and awareness raising activities. The One Health Platform organizes the biennial International One Health Conferences. More information is available through the monthly One Health Media Bulletin and at www.onehealthplatform.com.